When a team relocation is announced, the move will mean heartbreak for some sports fans, but it also offers the opportunity to build for others. Former Cleveland Browns placekicker and offensive tackle Lou Groza compared his team’s relocation to a fire that “has just burned out. And all you’re left with is ashes.” Excitement or dismay aside, what do these moves mean for the teams’ intellectual property? Football In 1995, then-Browns owner Arthur.. Read More

The debate over whether or not fashion designs should be protected by copyright law is in full swing in the United States. Several legislative attempts to pass a “fashion bill” to protect three-dimensional fashion designs in the United States have been launched. A similar issue in copyright law has emerged in Taiwan, where the copyright law does not protect the cut and shape of a three-dimensional fashion design, but only the pictorial and.. Read More

Teenagers throughout the world would tell you that sports video games have vastly improved over the last 20 years. Game controls have become more sophisticated, player movements have been refined, and depictions of sports venues have become infinitely more detailed. Yet, the most striking difference between the games of today and those of the mid-to-late 90’s are the depictions of the actual bodies of the players. The generic figures of early video games.. Read More

This panel was part of a two-part series of the Annual Survey of American Law 2017 Symposium, entitled: “Copyrighting What We Wear: A Legal and Technological Restyling.” They will host their second event on April 3, 2017 focusing on copyrighting wearable technology. Cheerleading uniforms and color patterns took center stage as students and lawyers gathered in New York University School of Law’s Greenberg Lounge in February. A panel presented by the NYU Annual.. Read More

A few months ago, the ABA Journal published an article addressing lawyers’ recent aggressive involvement in minimizing pay-per-view theft. Pay-per-view theft can be categorized into roughly three subheadings: active theft, pay theft, and passive theft. Active theft occurs when someone intentionally makes an illegal physical connection to the cable system for the purpose of receiving cable service in their business. Pay theft occurs when someone intentionally attaches equipment (e.g., black boxes, decoders, etc.).. Read More

One of the major battles going on in patent law is that concerning the CRISPR gene-editing technology. Basically, this technology allows for the modification of genes in living organisms. As one can imagine, if this technology could be perfected for use in human DNA, the scientific and business possibilities are vast and valuable. Involving this technology is a patent battle between the University of California Berkeley and the Broad Institute, which includes Harvard.. Read More

In their March 21 decision on SCA Hygiene Products AB v. First Quality Baby Products LLC, the Supreme Court eliminated the laches defense in patent prosecution cases, potentially making it easier for patent-holders to “lie in wait” in order to obtain greater damages. The decision perhaps flew under the radar in the wake of the Varsity Brands decision, but could have a wide-ranging financial impact on patent-holders in the future. In patent infringement.. Read More

It wasn’t too long ago when self-driving cars, as portrayed in “I, Robot,” seemed like a thing of the distant future. But, lo and behold, self-driving cars no longer seem out of reach. In fact, it seems like they may be right around the corner. Last year, Elon Musk predicted that by the end of 2017 he will produce a Tesla that can drive itself from Los Angeles to New York City. With.. Read More

One of the most controversial question in the modern sports era is, what is an amateur? It seems silly and almost intuitive, but as one delves into the depths of this question, the waters quickly become murky. A quick search of the term yields denotative definitions that we connotatively think of: “a person who engages in a study, sport, or other activity for pleasure rather than for financial benefit or professional reasons,” or,.. Read More

Richard Samson is the Vice President and Assistant General Counsel the New York Times, and recently spoke as a panelist at the JIPEL Careers in IP Symposium. Parts of the conversation have been condensed and edited for clarity. Q: How did you end up practicing intellectual property law? A: I had a really strong interest in entertainment and media before I even went to law school. I thought, without really knowing too much.. Read More